Rules of the Game
by PhaiFan
Summary: Just a little something short and silly...letting the boys just be boys for a while. Games can be fun!
1. Chapter 1

**_I decided to just let the boys have a little silly fun this time. _**

**_The usual stuff...I don't own the movie, the characters, nothing...I just like to play with them._**

* * *

They were in various stages of drunkenness, the whole lot of them.

They had been victorious at Chaeronea and had decided that a celebration was in order. Oh, they had already had a banquet for King Philip and the royal court, his generals, friends and other dignitary. They all drank and laughed and celebrated there with the rest of the men, but felt they had to be on their best behavior in the presence of the King. He expected them to celebrate, but he also expected them…Alexander in particular…to exhibit behavior befitting a prince and his entourage.

Not now, though. In a rare evening free of lessons and physical training, they were free to have a little fun on their own. This was a private party thrown in Alexander's chambers with his closest friends and companions. Most of the young men were around the same age as Alexander, or slightly older, though he had invited Cleitus as well. Alexander enjoyed spending time in his company, and he always had wonderful stories of battles to share.

Alexander had made sure that there was plenty of food, and the wine flowed abundantly. As soon as someone drained their cup, a servant was there to fill it. The air was full of laughter and boasting of their recent battle. They sat on floor or on cushions in a big circle.

"Face it, my friends, we kicked some serious ass!" Alexander exclaimed loudly, receiving shouts of affirmation and victory in return.

Hephaestion had a fit of the giggles and was practically doubled over from laughing so hard. Cassander had whispered something in his ear that he apparently found hysterical. He clutched at this stomach, trying hard to catch his breath.

Alexander looked amused. "Hephaestion? Are you okay?" He found it slightly odd that he was sitting and laughing with Cassander since the latter was quick to give Hephaestion a hard time about most everything. Tonight, he figured they were too drunk to care.

Hephaestion sat up as straight as he could, tears streaming down his face. "Alexander! Guess what Cassander told me? He said…"

His words were quickly cut off by Cassander's hand covering his mouth. "Shut up, Hephaestion! Don't you dare repeat that. Besides…" he leaned over and whispered something else in Hephaestion's ear.

Hephaestion roared with laughter and doubled over again with his face in his hands. Cassander was giggling uncontrollably, his face slightly red.

Alexander shook his head. "I don't even think I want to know" he said to Ptolemy, who was sitting beside him.

Ptolemy shook his head. "With Cassander, I am not sure I want to know either. Hephaestion must be pretty wasted if he is hanging out with him. They don't even like each other!"

Leonnatus chimed in. "Oh, but you're wrong! Hephaestion may not like Cassander, but Cassander has the hots for Hephaestion. Always has. You know that, don't you Alexander?"

Alexander nodded. "Aye, I know of it." He grinned at Hephaestion and Cassander, who were now rolling on the floor giggling like school boys. "Hephaestion rarely drinks like this. I fear he will be sorry in the morning." He smiled at the others around him. "I, on the other hand, can hold my own." Raising his cup, he looked around for the nearest servant. "Wine! Bring us more wine, boy!"

Their cups were refilled and they continued with their little celebration.

Cleitus sat back and watched the boys as they drank themselves silly. He knew they had every right to celebrate and was, frankly, enjoying just observing them. Some of them behaved quite differently than normal when they were deep in their cups and their guard let down. He chuckled to himself as he looked at Hephaestion. It seemed that the boy who was known for his quiet, reserved manner could be quite the character when drunk. And he definitely lost his inhibitions. The general caught Alexander's eye and grinned at him, holding his cup up in a silent salute.

Alexander was quite amused by Hephaestion's antics. He was still rolling on his back, laughing hysterically at whatever Cassander was saying to him. The giggles had been contagious, and now several others around them were laughing, too. Cassander was laughing as well, but he had that smug look on his face that he got when he thought he had gotten the better of someone. It made Alexander wonder just what he had been whispering in Hephaestion's ear.

Hephaestion sat up, shaking his head to clear his fuzzy vision, and staggered to his feet. Several sets of eyes watched him as he stumbled over to Alexander's bed and retrieved the dagger that he kept under his pillow. He managed to stumble back to his former spot, falling into Cassander's lap as he tried to sit back down. He leaned forward as gracefully as he could and laid the dagger on the floor in front of him, and then sat back on his heels. He looked at Cassander, who nodded at him in encouragement.

Alexander wondered what on earth they were up to. By now, most of them were watching Hephaestion.

Hephaestion grinned at all of them and motioned for them to come closer. His speech slurred, he giggled and addressed the group. "Gentle…gentlemen! We are going to play a game! Come; sit in a circle around me, all of you." He hiccupped and giggled again.

Ptolemy and Alexander exchanged a look and shrugged. Everyone else did as he asked until they encircled him completely.

Hephaestion continued. "Cassander taught me a new game, and we are all going to play. It'll be fun!" he grinned and giggled again.

Cleitus looked at Alexander and shook his head. "Gods, Alexander, he is totally wasted. Perhaps we should send him to bed to sleep it off."

Alexander was too curious for that. "No, let's see what this game of his is. I do like games, you know." He smiled and winked.

"Okay…okay…here's what we're going to do" Hephaestion chirped happily. "You all sit in the circle and I sit in the middle. I have to spin the dagger, and whoever it points to when it stops…I have to kiss them!" He giggled and blushed.

Most of them cracked up at that. Ptolemy groaned and shook his head. Cleitus just grinned. Oh, to be that young again he thought.

At first Alexander looked slightly annoyed, but then a slow smile curved his lips. Several of the others looked at him, wondering if they should say something, but stopped when they saw him begin to smile.

Ptolemy looked concerned and caught Alexander's attention. "Alexander…" he began, "you know that isn't how that game is supposed to be played, don't you? Everyone is supposed to spin the dagger, not just one person. If he plays it like this, then Hephaestion will be the one kissing everyone else, every time." He frowned. "No wonder Cassander is laughing so much!"

Alexander laid a hand on his shoulder and chuckled. "Oh, I know the rules my friend. I am surprised Hephaestion does not as well, but it seems he is either not familiar with this particular game or too drunk to notice the difference." He grinned. "No, I think I'd like to watch this. This is a side of Hephaestion I daresay none of us will see very often." He looked at Ptolemy with mischief in his eyes. "What is the matter, friend, are you afraid you'll have to kiss him yourself?"

Ptolemy laughed. "I'd prefer not to, but I'll play along if you insist."

Alexander spoke up. "Okay, friends, you heard the man! Gather closer in the circle and sit. Cleitus, you, too!"

A grinning Cleitus happily obliged. He had always thought Hephaestion to be quite beautiful and this was a chance he wasn't going to miss.

"Ready? Okay…first spin!" Hephaestion spun the dagger and waited. Everyone watched as it slowed its spin, waiting to see who would be the first it would point to. Finally it came to stop. Everyone looked up. It was pointed directly at Perdiccas.

Perdiccas looked quickly at Alexander, seemingly asking for permission. Alexander nodded that it was okay.

A grinning Hephaestion leaned forward, puckered up and placed a quick peck on Perdiccas' lips. Everyone laughed, except Cassander.

"That wasn't a kiss, Hephaestion! You can do better than that!" he grumbled. He quieted down after receiving a glare from Alexander.

"Here we go!" giggled an enthusiastic Hephaestion as he gave the dagger another spin. All eyes were glued to the spinning weapon as it came to rest again…this time pointed at, of all people, Ptolemy.

Ptolemy groaned. He really didn't want to kiss Hephaestion. He loved the man, but he REALLY loved women. Lots of women. But, he had agreed to it, so…he closed his eyes, puckered up and quickly pecked Hephaestion's lips, backing away quickly. He looked at Alexander. "There…I did it. Can I bow out now?" He scooted back away from the circle at Alexander's nod. Had that been a woman in the center of the circle, well…that would have been another story entirely!

Once again the dagger spun, and once again many pairs of eyes watched it until it stopped. This time it was pointed at Cleitus. You would have thought the man had won all the gold in Persia. His face lit up and he grinned from ear to ear. He was so going to enjoy this. As a giggling Hephaestion leaned in to peck his lips, the older man grabbed him and planted one on him. No peck on the lips for him! After a moment, he released a breathless and blushing Hephaestion. He smiled at Alexander, quite pleased with himself. "You wanted me to play, Alexander! And I thank you for that!"

Alexander laughed heartily. "Aye, I did. Hephaestion, are you okay?" The brunette looked slightly stunned, and everyone else laughed at his dazed expression.

Hephaestion shook his head and smiled. "Yep. Let's go again!" he exclaimed enthusiastically. He was rather having fun with this little game. The dagger spun, first landing on Leonnatus, and after that on Harpalus. Hephaestion placed quick pecks on their lips and continued. None of them were feeling any pain, as the wine had continued to flow generously.

Alexander sat patiently. He wanted to kiss him as well, but not one of those silly little pecks. Watching an uninhibited and laughing Hephaestion made him want to do lots of things to him that did not include a chaste peck on the lips. His mind wandered to all sorts of fun things he could do to him, until a loud shout brought his attention back to the game.

Cassander shouted triumphantly as the dagger pointed to him. This whole thing had been his idea, after all, and he was dying to get a taste of those lips he had dreamed of so often. Hephaestion grinned at him, and Cassander grinned back. He knew Hephaestion would not normally be receptive to his affection at all, so he went for it. He grabbed him, leaned him over, and kissed him thoroughly.

All the other eyes in the room flew to Alexander, worried at his reaction. Alexander's eyes narrowed and he cleared his throat loudly. Cassander immediately released Hephaestion, who fell backwards and giggled some more. Cassander smirked at Alexander. He had gotten what he wanted, and he decided that Alexander was one damned lucky man. At least he had gotten to taste those lips this once.

Alexander had had enough. He was fine until he saw Cassander kiss Hephaestion, but then jealousy reared its head and he no longer felt like sharing him with anyone. He reached for the dagger and turned it so that it was pointing towards himself. "Hephaestion!"

Hephaestion looked at Alexander, looked down at the dagger pointing towards him, then back up, his eyes locking with those of the prince. His eyes narrowed and darkened and a slow smile appeared on his face. He licked his lips in anticipation and crawled on his hands and knees until he was directly in front of Alexander. He pressed forward until Alexander actually had to lean back a little as Hephaestion hovered over him.

Alexander caught his breath. His Hephaestion, his normally reserved, dignified Hephaestion, was staring at him with a look that no one there could mistake. Lust. Alexander felt his pulse quicken and he swallowed hard.

Everyone else was speechless. Hephaestion never acted like this in public, though they all knew they were lovers. He was normally discreet to a fault. This Hephaestion was definitely uninhibited, very aggressive, and sexy as hell. A few of them felt a little uncomfortable. Cassander just frowned. Oh how he wished that look had been directed towards him.

Hephaestion struck. He reached out and grabbed Alexander by the shoulders and crashed his lips into those of his very startled friend. There was nothing chaste at all about this kiss. Alexander forgot where he was for a moment and kissed him back with equal fervor before coming to his senses and gently pushing Hephaestion back. He realized every eye in the room was riveted to the two of them. He gave Hephaestion another slight push to put some distance between them.

Hephaestion got another case of the giggles and fell over sideways, landing in Cleitus lap. The general looked amused and ruffled Hephaestion's hair. "Alexander, I think it's time for him to call it a night. He's pretty far gone."

Alexander nodded. "I agree." He addressed the others in the room. "Gentlemen, I think we have enjoyed our little game of spin the dagger, but I believe I need to put our friend here to bed." He stared at a smug Cassander. "Cassander, if he remembers any of this, he is going to be beyond pissed off at you."

As they all rose to leave, Cassander grinned at Alexander. Oh, it had been worth it. They all bid their good evenings to Alexander, and to Hephaestion who merely giggled some more.

Ptolemy walked out, shaking his head. Hephaestion was not going to be happy at all in the morning, for several reasons. He caught Cleitus' eye as they were leaving. Cleitus turned as they were going out the door and addressed Alexander. "Don't forget, Alexander, he is going to be royally pissed at you as well. You knew that this wasn't how the game is supposed to be played, and you allowed it. Don't put all the blame on Cassander, my friend. I think you might have some answering to do yourself…if he remembers." He winked at Alexander and walked out, closing the door behind him as he left.

Alexander turned and looked at Hephaestion, who was now sitting up and staring at him with glazed, unfocused eyes. Gods, he had never seen him this drunk before. He felt rather guilty for letting him play the game that way and knew Cleitus was right. He was going to be in big trouble if Hephaestion remembered.

Hephaestion's vision was blurry and he could hear his heartbeat pounding in his ears. He saw Alexander standing there, looking at him, and struggled ungracefully to his feet. "My Achilles!" he chirped, swaying slightly.

Alexander laughed and took him by the shoulders. "Yes, my Patroclus. I think you need to lie down." He swatted Hephaestion's hand away as he tried to grope him. "None of that tonight, my love. You are in no shape." He turned Hephaestion around and walked him to the bed, guiding him by his hands on his shoulders. Hephaestion was compliant but nearly tripped as he ran into the side of the bed. Alexander leaned forward and looked around at Hephaestion's face. "Phai, are your eyes even open?"

Hephaestion giggled. "Nope."

Alexander groaned. This was not good. Hephaestion was going to very sorry in the morning that he had drunk this much. "Lie down, my drunken Patroclus."

Hephaestion flopped backwards onto the bed, immediately grabbing at the bedclothes and looking wildly around the room. He moaned and turned an odd shade of grey. "Oh Alexander…please make the room stop spinning. It's all going like this" he motioned with his hand, making circles in the air. "Alexander? I don't think I feel very good…"

Alexander pulled him up from the bed and walked him swiftly to the toilet area, where Hephaestion spent the next hour throwing up. A very patient Alexander got him cleaned up and tucked into bed, where Hephaestion promptly passed out. Morning was not going to be pretty for him.


	2. Chapter 2

Hephaestion woke to the sound of a loud pounding in his ears and a light so bright it hurt his eyes. It took him a few moments to realize that the pounding sound was his own heartbeat, and the blinding light was just daylight coming through the window. He sat up and immediately regretted the action, so he flopped back down on the bed. He couldn't figure out what was wrong with him. Why did he feel so horrible? His stomach felt awful and it felt like there was someone inside his head trying to hammer their way out. He groaned, which drew the attention of a dozing Alexander who was lying beside him. "Well, Hephaestion. I see you have decided to join the living."

Hephaestion groaned again. "No, Alexander. I think Hades as drug me off and run me over. I think I would prefer to be dead just now." He realized he was sleeping in Alexander's bed, but didn't quite remember how he got there. He still felt slightly dizzy and disoriented. "What, in the name of the gods, did we do last night?"

Alexander hesitated. He certainly did not want to tell Hephaestion about their little game of "spin the dagger", especially since they had not played by the normal rules and Hephaestion had ended up kissing pretty much everybody there. Had he not been so drunk himself, he might have stopped it. "You had a bit too much to drink, my love. I put you to bed." Yes, he thought, I'll just skip over all that stuff.

Hephaestion would not let him off that easy it seemed. "But what did we do? All I really remember is Cassander making me laugh…about something…I can't remember." He sat up on the side of the bed and noticed the room still felt like it was spinning a little bit. Wait…spinning…he tried to remember why that seemed significant. Then he saw the dagger on the bedside table. Spinning….SPINNING! He remembered, at least part of it.

He turned and looked at Alexander, who was still reclining on the bed and was presently toying with a pillow. "Alexander! That dagger…did I…did I….?" He was afraid to finish the sentence.

Alexander covered his face with the pillow, wishing to disappear, but he knew he had to come clean. He sat up and looked at Hephaestion with a sheepish expression. "What do you remember, Phai?"

Hephaestion rubbed his aching forehead and sighed. "I think I remember kissing just about everyone in the room. And spinning that damned dagger! Is that what happened?"

"Aye, Hephaestion. You remember correctly."

"Did I really kiss everybody? Even Ptolemy? He likes women too much for that."

Alexander laughed. "Perhaps, but he let you give him a quick peck anyway before he bowed out of the game."

"And Cleitus? Did he grab me?"

Alexander nodded.

Hephaestion looked horrified. "Oh, Alexander…please tell me I didn't really kiss Cassander…"

Alexander stared at the ceiling. "Well, I could tell you that if you like, but it would not be truth."

Hephaestion was silent for a moment as he gradually remembered everything that had happened. Suddenly he looked at Alexander with wide eyes.

"Hey, that is not how that game is supposed to be played! Why was I the only one spinning the dagger? That was Cassander's idea, wasn't it?"

Alexander nodded, and waited…

Hephaestion frowned and glared at Alexander. "And YOU! You let him do it! How could you, Alexander?"

Alexander smiled sheepishly. "I could use the excuse that I was drunk, but I do not think you will leave it at that." He sat up and took Hephaestion's hands in his, looking at him apologetically. "Forgive me, Phai. It was foolish of me. I got caught up with everyone else. You are quite something when you are drunk, my love. You probably would have danced naked if someone had asked it of you." He licked his lips as the vision of a naked Hephaestion dancing before him filled his head. He shook his head to clear his thoughts. "You seemed to be having fun, though. Are you truly angry with me?"

Hephaestion sighed and chuckled softly. "No, Alexander, I am not angry. I suppose it actually is rather funny. Gods, that is probably the first time Ptolemy has kissed someone who didn't have breasts!" He laughed at that thought. "Just promise me something. Promise me you will never let Cassander make up games for us to play like that. Promise me I will never have to kiss that man again…ever!" He shuddered.

Alexander laughed and wrapped his arms around Hephaestion. "I promise I will protect you from Cassander, my love. So…am I forgiven?"

Hephaestion nodded. "Only because I love you so much." He gave Alexander a tender kiss and ruffled his hair. "Why don't we go and eat our breakfast. They are all going to tease me, so I may as well get it over with."

* * *

Upon entering the dining hall, Hephaestion was greeted by kissing sounds and puckered lips from most of their friends.

Hephaestion laughed and shook his head. He had expected as much. He grinned. "Gentlemen, you may all bite my lily white ass!"

Everyone laughed as he and Alexander sat down with them for their morning meal.

Ptolemy spoke up. "So, Hephaestion, how much of last night to you remember?"

Hephaestion grinned at him. "Enough to remember that I kissed you."

"Let's just forget about that" Ptolemy shook his head and made a face.

Hephaestion smiled. "I remember kissing most of you, for that matter. I hope you enjoyed it, because it will not happen again!"

Perdiccas winked at him. "Aye, Hephaestion, we know where all your kisses are going to go." He turned to Alexander and winked at him as well.

Alexander grinned. "And don't you forget it!" He looked around the room briefly. "Where is Cassander? Is he hiding somewhere? He is probably afraid Hephaestion is angry with him."

Hephaestion snorted. "Ha! Since when has that stopped Cassander from doing anything? He is happiest when he is pissing someone off. I am sure he is quite proud of himself for his little game last night."

Alexander appeared lost in thought, and then a slow smile gradually curved his lips. He chuckled softly to himself, catching Hephaestion's attention.

"Um…care to share, Alexander? What is it that amuses you so?"

Alexander's eyes danced with humor and he gave his friends a conspiratorial look after glancing around to make sure Cassander wasn't about. "I have an idea."

All attention was focused on him now.

"I think we need to play a little prank on Cassander, similar to what he did to Hephaestion last evening. Yes, I think he deserves a taste of his own medicine."

Hephaestion eyed him thoughtfully. "And what, pray tell, do you have in mind, my devious prince?"

"Cleitus was telling me about a game they used to play when he was a youth, and I think we might find it to be fun. It is like our little "spin the dagger" game, in that everyone is supposed to take a turn. BUT…we could trick Cassander into doing as Hephaestion did and taking all the turns himself. If he has not heard of this game, that is."

Ptolemy shook his head. "I like it. What is this game you refer to?"

Alexander checked again to make sure Cassander was not near and motioned for his friends to lean in closer. "It is called 'Truth or Dare'. The way it is supposed to be played is this; Player one starts the game by asking player two: "Truth or Dare?" If player two chooses "truth," then player one poses a question, usually embarrassing and player two must answer. If player two chooses "dare," then player one poses a task, also usually embarrassing, which player two must perform. After answering the question or performing the dare, player two takes player one's place, asks "Truth or Dare?" of another player, and the game proceeds as before. If the queried player fails to complete their dare or answer their question, they are faced with an even more challenging dare or question." He paused and looked over his shoulder again. "Now, knowing Cassander, he would be very unlikely to select 'truth'. He would sooner be skinned alive than to share his secrets I would bet. A dare, however, that is a different animal entirely. Cassander's ego would not allow him to refuse a dare, no matter what." He grinned. "Think of it, my friends…the possibilities are endless!"

Hephaestion laughed. "I love it! We can dare him to do all sorts of humiliating things, and he will have to do them, or be shamed. We all know he would never allow that to happen!"

"Right!" Alexander agreed. "I am going to invite everyone to my chambers again this evening and I will make sure the wine flows freely. We'll make sure he is well into his cups and feeling a bit reckless, and then we will strike!"

Perdiccas laughed. "It's perfect! But what if he is familiar with the game? If he is, he will know he is being set up!"

Alexander smiled. "We will just have to wait and see."

"Just one thing, Alexander" Ptolemy spoke up. "Please, PLEASE do not dare him to kiss me!"

They all roared with laughter. They had all day to think of dares to give Cassander.


	3. Chapter 3

They had been drinking and partying in Alexander's chambers for a while. Much to Cassander's delight, Hephaestion had made a point to sit with him, keeping him occupied with funny stories and making sure he had plenty of wine to drink. By this time, Cassander was feeling no pain for sure. His bold attempts at groping Hephaestion showed that his inhibitions were pretty much gone.

Alexander noticed this and decided it was the perfect time to strike. "Cassander! Stop pawing Hephaestion and come over here!"

An unsteady Cassander stumbled over to Alexander and flopped himself down next to him on a cushion. Alexander smiled brightly at him.

"My dear friend Cassander! How would you like to play a game with us?"

Cassander grinned. "I like games." His speech was more than a little slurred.

"Yes, I know" Hephaestion mumbled under his breath, too soft for Cassander to hear.

"Wonderful!" Alexander exclaimed, still smiling brightly. "Have you ever heard of a game called 'Truth or Dare'?"

Cassander shook his head. "No, but it sounds like fun already. How do you play?"

Hephaestion and Perdiccas tried to hide their snickers, and Ptolemy had to look away and bite his lip to keep from laughing out loud. Alexander shot them a look to be quiet. He didn't want Cassander to smell a rat.

Alexander draped his arm around Cassander's shoulder. "You, my friend, are the star of the game. Everyone else has to take turns asking you for a truth or giving you a dare…" he went on to explain the rest of the "rules", at least the version they had made up. Cassander was drunk enough and happy enough at being the center of attention that he readily agreed to everything.

Alexander winked at the others and smiled. "Great! Hephaestion …you go first!"

* * *

The next morning at breakfast, everyone was present, eating their meal and laughing about the previous night's events. Alexander felt somebody elbow him in the ribs and looked to see Ptolemy nodding towards the door. A very angry looking Cassander stood in the doorway, glaring at them all.

Hephaestion hid his face in his hands, trying very hard not to laugh. "Alexander, this is not going to be good." Everyone else was trying not to laugh as well.

Cassander stomped over to the table and stood in front of them. His face was red and he was breathing hard. He fixed them with the nastiest glare he could give.

"Would someone mind telling me just what in Hades went on last night?"

Alexander tried to look innocent, but failed miserably. "What are you talking about, Cassander?"

Cassander stomped his foot. "Please explain to me why I woke up wearing a woman's tunic, and why there was a pig in my bed?"

The boys were about to lose it. Ptolemy finally spoke. "I have warned you about picking up ugly girls like that, Cassander! You certainly don't want to wake up with one in your bed!"

"No, you idiot!" Cassander snapped. "An ACTUAL pig! Who did this?"

Someone made a snorting noise and the rest of them totally fell apart, no longer able to contain their laughter.

Alexander wiped the tears from his eyes as he tried to stop laughing. "You put it there yourself, Cassander. Don't you remember? Leonnatus dared you to…"

"Stop! I don't want to hear any more!" Cassander shouted. "I hate you all. I hope Hades comes and drags you all down with him." He turned and stomped out of the room, causing the rest of them to cackle even more.

Hephaestion could barely breathe. "Oh, Alexander! He is never going to forgive us for this! You thought he could be nasty before, just wait!"

Alexander got his laughter under control. "I will handle Cassander. I will just remind him of the game he tricked Hephaestion into, and threaten to tell everyone that he woke up with a pig in his bed. That will shut him up!"

* * *

They had all just finished their evening meal and were chatting away about nothing in particular, all except for Cassander who sat quietly wearing a scowl on his face. They had finally convinced him to sit with them and swore that they were sorry. It was, after all, the fault of the wine! Alexander had even managed to persuade Nearchus and Perdiccas to stop making pig noises every time they saw Cassander.

Hephaestion noticed that all through dinner Alexander had been watching him. He would look up and catch the prince staring at him. There was no mistaking the look in those eyes. Alexander was horny; it was as simple as that. Well, it had been a few days, after all. Hephaestion returned his gaze steadily a few times, his own eyes revealing his desire as well. Suddenly the dining hall seemed very crowded.

Alexander couldn't take it anymore. He stood. "Gentlemen, I believe I will retire to my chambers early this evening. No party tonight!" He smiled at them. "Health to you, my friends." He turned to Hephaestion, trying not to look too anxious "Hephaestion, would you come with me please? I wish to discuss something with you."

Cassander frowned even more. He knew exactly what was going on, and it was not going to involve much talking. Ptolemy smiled; he knew exactly what they were up to as well. The others were involved in their conversations and didn't give the matter much notice.

Hephaestion followed behind Alexander as he walked quickly to his room. He turned and waited as Alexander locked the door behind them. Alexander had that look in his eyes, and Hephaestion knew he was in trouble…but not in a bad way. He smiled at him. "Yes, Alexander? What is it you need to discuss with me?"

Alexander grinned at him wickedly. "Hephaestion, let's play a game."

Hephaestion groaned. "Don't you think we have had enough of those lately?"

Alexander moved closer to him and lightly touched a finger to his chest. "Oh, Phai, I think you will like this game."

Hephaestion sighed. He was not going to win this one. "Okay, Alexander, what is this game of yours?"

Alexander retrieved a small wooden box from his bedside table and dumped the contents on the floor.

Hephaestion looked at him, slightly confused. "Knucklebones? What is so special about that?"

Alexander sat cross legged on the stone floor and indicated for Hephaestion to take a seat, which he did. "Well, this is knucklebones…with a twist. You see, after each game the loser has to remove a piece of clothing; sandals, bracelets, chitons, loincloths…whatever."

"Strip knucklebones?" Hephaestion laughed. "So, how do we determine the overall winner of this game?"

Alexander licked his lips and winked at Hephaestion. "Easy. Once we have both lost all our clothes, we BOTH win!"

Hephaestion grabbed the pieces off the floor, ready to play. He smiled seductively at Alexander. "I think I like games"


End file.
